Page 41 of The Ruse of Romancing

Dani

I stepped into Sugar and Sea and was immediately greeted by the amazing smells of baking bread and cinnamon. I’d arrived a bit earlier than usual, determined to get a good breakfast and at least a little bit of writing done before it was time to leave for Allen’s grandparents’ house.

While Allen had called Avery and warned her I wouldn’t get much writing in today, I was so close to being done that I couldn’t not work on the story some.

This was the fastest I’d ever written a book, the words flowing at a rate I’d never seen or experienced before.

There was something magic about Oregon that had unlocked this story filled with love and magic, and I couldn’t wait to see how it ended.

“Don’t you look chipper,” Joane said as I reached the cash register. Today her shirt was a vibrant purple with white polka dots. It made me feel shabby for wearing a plain blue t-shirt accessorized by Allen’s jacket, which I’d yet to return after the mishap with my Doris Day dress.

“It’s a good day! What can I say?” I didn’t even try to hide the smile that filled my face as I thought about how I’d be spending most of the day with Allen.

I gave Joane my order but waited by the cash register for her to fulfill it instead of going to my table.

There was no one behind me in line, and I was in the mood to chat.

I’d already texted her about my sourdough debacle the night before, but I wanted to catch up for a bit.

We hadn’t been able to talk as much the last few days with writing filling my days and Allen occupying my nights.

“Are you still seeing that tourist?” Joane asked, handing me my coffee and a small brown paper bag containing pastries.

“Yes, and he’s still wonderful,” I said, thinking about our upcoming adventure today, and how we’d snuggled while watching Pillow Talk last night.

“I’m glad you’ve found love on the Oregon coast, though I do wish you’d fallen for one of our locals. I want you to come back and become a permanent resident,” Joane said as another customer walked into the shop.

“I don’t know that I’m quite ready to relocate for a man,” I told Joane, and I started walking to my usual table to squeeze in some writing.

Allen would be picking me up from the duplex in a couple of hours, giving me plenty of time to work.

“Though I wouldn’t say never either. I’m trying to stay open to the possibilities.

” A part of me still worried that Allen and I wouldn’t be able to make a long-distance relationship work, but for Allen I was willing to give it a try.

“Just be careful,” Joane called, the whole bakery audience to her parting words. “I know a thing or two about vacation romances, and I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“I appreciate that.”

As I settled in to write, I did my best to push aside Joane’s warning.

I knew Allen. In fact, I was fairly certain meeting Allen and allowing myself to fall for him was part of why I’d finally been able to start writing again.

His words at Powell’s, encouraging me to keep writing, had become a war cry of sorts each time I sat down and felt the imposter syndrome start to niggle at the corners of my mind.

My only regret was that I’d be leaving Cascade Harbor as soon as my draft was done so I could go with Avery to Italy. Though maybe I could fly straight back to Oregon afterward and capture a bit more time with Allen before we both had to return home to reality.

I pulled out my laptop, picking up the story where I’d left off, Hypatia’s and Petros’s romance calling to me and begging me to reach the conclusion.

But even as I wrote about stolen kisses and magic battles, Joane’s words continued to echo in my mind, a warning that I couldn’t shake.

I knew Allen. He was kind and genuine. He’d never hurt me, at least not intentionally. So why did Joane’s words bring to mind Spencer’s warning from Mason about how summer romances never lasted?